Lyons Square Playground

Lyons Square

Lyons Square, bounded by Bruckner Boulevard, Aldus Street, Longfellow Avenue, and Bryant Avenue, was named for landowner and Civil War veteran James L. Lyons by the Board of Aldermen on April 17, 1928.

Lyons was a charter member of the Bronx Oldtimers Association which was founded in 1911 by the Bronx’s first Borough President, Louis Haffen, for people who had lived in the Bronx for fifty years or more. Lyons’ estate was nearby on Forest Avenue between Home Street and Boston Road. Previously, his estate had belonged to Colonel Richard Hoe, for whom Hoe Avenue was named.

James L. Lyons should not be confused with a prominent 20th Century Bronxite, James J. Lyons, who served twenty-eight years as Borough President from 1934 to 1961.

This site was acquired by the City on June 12, 1925, thirty five years before the adjacent Bruckner Expressway was constructed. Lyons Square Playground was renovated in 1997 under a $225,000 requirements contract funded by Mayor Giuliani. Improvements include the installation of play equipment, rubber safety surfaces, lion ornamental features, fencing, and pavement.